Departure
by mormonsrock
Summary: High school is tough. Especially when you're dead. And having a vengeful angel of death on your trail doesn't really help matters, either. I'm sorry, I should probably introduce myself. But the problem is that I don't know who I am, either.
1. Chapter 1: Amnesiac

**Chapter 1: Amnesiac**

* * *

><p>...Where am I?<p>

I jolted awake to find myself sprawled out on the pavement, just staring up at the nighttime clouds.

...I can't remember a thing.

I sat up and looked all around me, searching for any kind of clue that might be able to tell me where I am.

To my left, I saw an asphalt path illuminated by several tall lamp posts. There were also drinking fountains nearby, along with several large planters strewn about the path. To my right, I saw several tall-ish buildings. They looked almost like office buildings, there were so many windows. In front of me were stairs that led down to some kind of football stadium below.

It appeared that I was in some sort of... school?

...Was was I wearing? I looked down at myself to see that I was wearing some kind of school uniform. It was pretty generic, with black pants, a black crewneck jacket, and a white polo shirt underneath.

That confirmed it, I guess. I was at some kind of school facility.

"You up yet?"

I was startled by a voice nearby.

I turned around and saw... a girl. Crouched behind a large bush in front of me, I saw a girl in a school uniform aiming a rather large gun at something off in the distance.

"Who...?" What was this girl doing with... was that a sniper rifle?

"Welcome," she said as she turned around and grinned at me, "to the Not-Yet-Dead Battlefront."

The girl had aqua-colored eyes, and short dark hair that reached just down to her shoulders, decorated with a green ribbon tied to a single lock of hair. She was also wearing a school uniform, but hers wasn't quite as generic as mine was. She had on a white long-sleeved shirt with a blue collar, and a blue pleated skirt that reached about mid-thigh, just above the black thigh-highs that she was wearing. She also wore black loafers and had a dark pink ribbon tied around her collar.

"Hey, I know this is kind of sudden," she said as she returned her attention to the gun, "but could you join up with us?"

"Huh? Join up?"

"Well, since you're here, that means you must be dead, right?" She said all this as if it was normal.

"What?" Who was this girl? And what did she mean, 'dead'? That was impossible... right?

"I'm sorry," I stammered. "I don't really know what's going on."

"This is the afterlife," she stated very matter-of-factly. "You'll get obliterated if you don't fight."

"Obliterated?" I asked. "By who?"

"I guess by Him," she said in a bored tone. "God, I mean."

I'm so confused. "What do you want me to join, exactly?" I asked

"Not-Yet-Dead Battlefront," she showed me a badge on her sleeve. "Our name kinda changes a lot."

She shifted her hold on the gun a bit before continuing. "It started out as 'Underworld Battlefront', but 'Underworld Battlefront' kinda sounds like we've _accepted_ that we're dead, y'know? So we changed it. And we've been changing names ever since. Right now, it's 'Not-Yet-Dead Battlefront'. Before, it was 'I-Feel-Dead Battlefront'."

The girl chuckled. "People sure didn't like that one. THAT name lasted about a day."

She paused for a moment and I seized the opportunity to ask the one question that was on my mind.

"Is that... A real gun?" I asked.

"Why does everyone always ask that?" The girl sighed. "Look. You're going to need to become a LOT more flexible. Accept things as they are."

"Accept things?" I asked. "Then what am I supposed to do?"

"Fight," she said seriously.

"Fight what?"

"That." She pointed at something off in the distance.

I looked toward where she was pointing, and I saw a girl standing in the middle of the football stadium, all by herself.

That was it.

"That's Not-Yet-Dead Battlefront's enemy, Angel." The girl next to me glared down toward the football field with absolute hatred in her blue-green eyes.

"Hm. Kinda wanting to change our name again," she said without turning her attention from 'Angel'. "You got any ideas?"

This girl was crazy! Was she really going to shoot that other girl down there?

Her dead-serious expression confirmed it.

I think she was.

"Hey," I suggested nervously, trying to choose my words carefully, "how about I go down there?"

"WHAT?" The girl turned from her gun and screamed at me, her hair, ribbon and all, flying with anger. "Why? WHY would you go down there? That doesn't make ANY sense! What made you say that? Are you an idiot or WHAT? Go die!"

She paused for a moment and seemed to calm down. "That's something we say here since nobody dies here," she said lightly. "What do you think? Funny?"

"Well, not so much..." I said before I remembered that it wasn't such a good idea to insult somebody with a gun, especially if they're this crazy. "But what do I know?" I added on quickly.

"Um... I think I'll have better luck talking with someone who's not some kind of high school sniper," I said cautiously as I started to get up.

The girl stood up and put her hands on her hips. "I'm on _your_ side!" she said angrily. "A little trust here, okay?"

I tried to think about how to answer that when suddenly a voice from behind us shouted, "Hey, Alexis!"

I turned and saw a boy about mine and the girl's age with wild red hair running toward us. He, too, carried some kind of machine gun.

Huh. So this girl's name was Alexis.

"How goes the recruitment of the newbie?" He nodded toward me when he finally made it over to where Alexis and I stood. He had dark, indigo-colored eyes and bright red hair that stuck up in several places. He wore black high-tops in place of the black dress shoes that I was wearing. He also wore black slacks and a red t-shirt under a long-sleeved white polo shirt, rolled up to his elbows. "We'll get him no matter what is takes to join our cause and then we'll..."

He stopped when he realized that Alexis had covered her face with her hands and was shaking her head to herself, muttering the word "idiot" under her breath.

"... What?" he said after some time.

Alexis suddenly snapped open her eyes, which were now burning with anger. "Josh!" She yelled as she slapped the boy in the face. Huh. So this guy here was Josh.

Josh's dark eyes started to water as he rubbed new the hand-shaped mark on his face.

"I'm going down there," I said as I started to walk down the steps to the football field. Anything to get away from those crazy terrorists.

As I was walking down the steps, I heard Alexis yelling to herself, "What the heck just HAPPENED? I used to be such a good recruiter!" followed by a string of cuss words.

Ugh... None of this makes any sense. Those two were nuts.

When I finally made it down to the football field where the "Angel" was I could get a better look at her.

She wore a white collared shirt tied with a gold ribbon at the collar underneath a tan jacket, and a black pleated skirt that went down to about her knees. She was also wearing white knee-high socks, and brown loafers, with a blue barrette in her hair. She had hair so blonde that it almost looked white. Almost angelic. Huh.

"Excuse me," I said as I walked up to her, trying to be polite.

She turned to look at me with amber-colored eyes. She was quite small, her head just barely came up to my shoulder.

"There are these kids up there that are trying to take a shot at you," I told her as I jerked a thumb in Alexis and Josh's direction. "They think you're some kind of angel." Not the best way to start a conversation, but...

She tilted her head. "But I'm not any kind of angel," she said in a soft voice. "I'm the student body president." Her voice was soft and angelic, like the soft tinkling of bells.

I paused for a moment after being dazed by her melodic voice before snapping myself back to reality.

"I'm such an idiot. I can't believe I fell for this..." I sighed to myself. "Why did I listen to them? I don't even know who I am." Wouldn't that be interesting? _Hello, I seem to have woken up in some strange high school with absolutely no idea of who or where I am. _Sounded like I was having a hangover or something.

"I should just go to the hospital," I muttered as I started to walk away.

"There aren't any hospitals," the girl said softly, causing me to freeze.

I turned to look at her. "What? How come?"

"Because nobody gets sick here," she said emotionlessly.

"Why not?"

"Because everyone is dead."

I searched her expression for any hint that she might be kidding.

I found none.

But surely she must be joking.

"Oh, I get it," I said irritatedly. "You're in on this too, aren't you? What is WRONG with you people? And my amnesia, are you responsible for that, too?"

"Amnesia is quite common here," the girl said without any expression. "People who were killed in any kind of accident often hurt their heads."

"Then prove it!" I heard myself getting louder with every word. "Prove that I can't die because I already..."

I stopped, because now the girl was slowly walking towards me.

"Hand-sonic," she said cryptically, and a sword suddenly grew out of her sleeve, as if materializing out of thin air.

The last thing I remembered was her thrusting the blade towards my chest.


	2. Chapter 2: Kyle

**Chapter 2: Kyle**

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><p>How dare he?<p>

I stormed through the halls with my halberd in my hand, outraged at that crazy amnesiac for refusing to join the Battlefront.

How dare he refuse Alexis?

I felt anger building up in every inch of my body, boiling my blood.

I let out a cry of rage and slammed by halberd into the wall, leaving a nasty mark. But I didn't care.

If he upset her, I'd... I'd...

I stopped and leaned against the wall.

...How could _anyone_ refuse Alexis?

I slid down until I was sitting on the floor. I laid my halberd on the ground next to me.

After all, who'd want to say no to those beautiful eyes, that stunning smile?

I knew _I_ wouldn't. I'd do anything for her.

I sighed. She had absolutely no idea. She was so clueless. But then again, if she knew, I'd probably lose my one friend in this world.

I felt myself smiling faintly.

I decided to sit there in the hallway for a few minutes, just thinking about things.

...'Things' meaning Alexis.

I sighed again. How could I _not _think about her?

About that beautiful dark hair that always swirled around her whenever she was excited? Those gorgeous aqua eyes that I could see the ocean in whenever I looked hard enough? That blinding smile that she rarely gave me?

I always thought about the way that she never hesitated, how she always charged forward without ever looking back. How she could bring the whole Battlefront together, and make us all smile.

...But I doubt she ever thought about me.

* * *

><p>I remembered how she'd stormed into Headquarters, her eyes ablaze with frustration. Josh was following her, looking awkward.<p>

"What wrong?" Lucas asked when he saw them.

Alexis remained silent as she sat down at the Principal's desk, still fuming.

If Josh had done something to Alexis...

I picked up my halberd and started walking towards him. "What did you do, Josh?" I demanded.

Josh held his hands up defensively. "I didn't do anything!" He said meekly. "Honest!"

"Yeah, right," I spat as I swung the halberd towards him. He deserved it.

"Put that down, Kyle," Alexis said emotionlessly from the desk. "He didn't do anything."

"Sorry, Alexis," I mumbled as I immediately backed away, my cheeks red with embarrassment. I'd messed up again...

There was an awkward silence that followed.

"So what happened?" Robin asked from her spot on the couch.

Alexis remained quiet for a moment before saying, "I messed up." Impossible. Everything Alexis did always turned out right, somehow.

"No, you didn't, Alex," Josh cut in. "It was mostly my fault." That really got me fuming.

I picked up my halberd again. "So you DID do something!" I shouted at Josh.

"Kyle! Stop it!" Alexis said angrily as she suddenly stood up from the Principal's chair.

I dropped my weapon and sheepishly took a step back.

"S-sorry..." I mumbled. Why couldn't I ever do anything right?

Alexis sighed and sat back down. "It was my fault," she said. "I tried to recruit this new guy..."

"There's someone new here?" Michael asked excitedly.

Alexis waved her hand. "But I think I scared him away. He seemed pretty creeped out by my rifle. And right after I talked to him, Angel went and stabbed him in the chest."

Ouch. I've been there. Not fun.

"Anyway, I don't think that guy will be joining us anytime soon, thanks to me," Alexis sighed.

It couldn't be Alex's fault. She was always too hard on herself.

"So... now what?" Robin asked. "Is he going to get reborn?"

"Probably," Alexis shrugged as she stared out the window, gazing out at who-knows-what.

Not if I can help it.

"Where is he now, Alex?" I asked, trying to contain my rage that was spreading all throughout my body.

"Probably in the infirmary," she shrugged, not looking away from the window. "That's where Angel always takes her victims afterward."

"For a serial killer, she sure is nice about it," Ryan muttered.

I picked up my halberd and marched out the door.

"Where're you going?" Jared asked.

"The infirmary," I called back over my shoulder.

* * *

><p>I punched the hallway wall, causing the doors to rattle. My arms were quivering with rage.<p>

That jerk would pay for upsetting Alexis.

I picked up my halberd and ran down the halls to the infirmary.


	3. Chapter 3: Amnesiac

**Chapter 3: Amnesiac**

* * *

><p>...Where am I?<p>

I awoke to find myself lying in some kind of hospital bed, with absolutely no recollection of how I got there.

I looked to my left, and saw a curtain rod attached to the ceiling, but the curtain was open. There were several beds in a row beside mine, but they were all empty. To my right, I saw the same thing. I was all alone.

What was this place, anyway? It looked like some kind of... infirmary?

Huh. How'd I get here?

Then I gasped as it all came flooding back.

Angel.

Hand-sonic.

I was stabbed in the chest.

I sat up, gasping for breath as I frantically felt my bare chest and found... nothing. No wound, no scar, no evidence of what happened.

"My gosh," I gasped, "I'm alive..."

Unless... it was all a dream?

For a dream, that was pretty vivid. And painful.

Then something caught my eye.

On a chair next to my hospital bed, I spied a red piece of fabric, neatly folded along with my jacket and shoes.

I apprehensively picked it up, and as I pulled it closer, I realized what it was.

It was a shirt, blood-spattered with a large slash in the middle.

My shirt.

With a cry, I threw it to the ground.

"Forget this," I said to myself as I quickly put my jacket on over my bare chest. Fortunately, whoever had brought me here had left my pants on. Thank goodness. "I don't know what's going on, but I'm getting out of here!"

I was putting on my shoes when the door opened.

I looked to see a boy with spiky black hair standing in the doorway, holding some kind of axe-looking thing. What is it called... a halberd?

"Not another one..." I muttered as I started to back away. How many terrorists could there be in this place?

"You jerk..." the boy said resentfully as he slowly walked towards me. His eyes were blazing with anger. "You're the one who insulted Alexis and refused to enlist in the Battlefront!" He swung the halberd dangerously close to my face. The boy was much taller than I was, making him seem even more intimidating.

I held up my hands defensively. "Hey, just calm down. Relax!" I said meekly as I took a step back.

"Wanna die?" The boy said with a crazy, mischievous look in his eye.

"Oh yeah, that joke! That's funny!" I laughed nervously. "Alexis told me that you guys say that, like, all the time!" I took another step back.

"DIE!" The boy screamed at me right before I felt a searing pain in my chest, an unbearable burning sensation. It was agonizing, so intense that I was sure I was dying.

Then everything went black.

* * *

><p>I opened my eyes to find myself in the infirmary again, only this time, I was lying on the ground. The guy with the halberd was long gone by now.<p>

I slowly got to my feet and found that my jacket was ripped to shreds.

What was that guy trying to do, kill me?

...That joke was even less funny now.

…Wait. All of that was painful enough to kill me, but I'm still here! How's that even possible?

...Hey, wait a second.

Alexis' words echoed in my mind.

"This is the Afterlife. You'll get obliterated if you don't fight."

...That's it! I'll get obliterated. Once I do, I can say goodbye to this crazy place.

...But how do I do that?

I exited the infirmary and ran down a hallway full of empty classrooms.

Isn't there someone around here that I can actually trust?

I ran outside and scanned the empty campus. I saw no one.

A teacher, maybe?

I entered a different building and ran down the hallway.

Where are all the teachers?

I stopped at the end of the hallway, in front of a big, heavy-looking door that said, 'Principal's Office'.

Perfect. The principal.

As I turned the doorknob, I saw something swinging towards me out of the corner of my eye.

It looked like... a giant mallet?

Before I had time to react, the mallet swung forward and crashed into me, sending me flying out a nearby window.

And then everything went black. Again.


	4. Chapter 4: Lucas

**Chapter 4: Lucas**

* * *

><p>I was polishing my glasses when they brought him in.<p>

I must admit, it was an odd experience.

Jared and Michael had found him when making their rounds on campus. Apparently, the door trap had gotten him, depositing him directly 3 floors below our headquarters, where I was at the time.

When they brought him up to us, that's when I realized how bad his state was.

His jacket was completely torn to ribbons. Judging by that, I'd say that he'd died multiple times today. He was also sound asleep, which meant he had just died again recently.

They laid him on the couch and stared at him for a bit.

"So what do we do with him?" Jared asked after a while.

"Maybe we can get him to join us!" Michael said excitedly.

"Don't get your hopes up," Alexis waved her hand. "I think I scared this guy pretty badly."

"So this is the guy from before?" Ryan asked.

Alexis nodded. "Don't freak him out. He's already been shaken pretty badly."

So this is the one who refused Alexis. It's no wonder Kyle was staring daggers at him from across the room.

"Death stares are not effective if the target is unconscious," I whispered to Kyle, happy to share a bit of friendly advice.

Kyle face turned an interesting shade of red before muttering, "Who asked you?"

Well, then. I was only trying to be neighborly.

"I'm leaving..." Kyle grumbled as he stormed out of the room.

We all stared at the unconscious adolescent for a minute or two in silence.

"Now, then," Alexis said after a few minutes, breaking the long silence. "Back to business."

She then put her feet up on the Principal's desk. "We need to think of a new name."


	5. Chapter 5: Amnesiac

**Chapter 5: Amnesiac**

* * *

><p>"How about this, 'You're-The-One-Who's-Gonna-Die Battlefront'?"<p>

I awoke to find myself surrounded by several voices.

"It sounds like I'M about to get killed."

"No, it'd be directed at that 'Angel' girl."

...Where am I? I opened my eyes and saw that I was lying on a couch... in the Principal's office? I sat up and looked around, taking in my surroundings. It looked like a pretty standard Principal's office; desk, bookshelves, certificates, etc. Don't quite know why there were two couches in there, though. There was also a framed picture of the Principal right above the desk, and someone had taken the liberty of drawing a mustache, unibrow, and devil's horns over his portrait.

I looked over and saw that Alexis was sitting with her feet up at the Principal's desk, surrounded by Josh, along with several other people I didn't recognize. They were all wearing the same uniforms as Alexis and Josh, with a few, I assumed, personal touches on each one depending on the person wearing the uniform.

"Anyone else?" Alexis sighed. "Any OTHER ideas?"

I sat up so I could hear them better.

"This is kinda cool," Josh said excitedly, "'Flashback Battlefront'."

"If only this WAS a flashback," Alexis rolled her eyes.

"Then how about this," a large, muscular boy suggested, "'Suicide Corp. Battlefront'."

"No way!" Alexis said irritatedly.

"'Desperate Battlefront'," said a girl holding a guitar.

"We're not desperate!" Alexis said defensively.

"Then 'The Invincible Squadron'," said a smaller boy.

"Where's the 'Battlefront' part?" asked Alexis.

"Then 'The Honorable Death Battalion'!" Cut in a tall boy holding a samurai sword.

"I _will_ hit you," Alexis threatened him.

"'Wright Brothers'!" Josh said excitedly.

"Was that a joke?" Alexis screamed as she slapped him in the face. "Jeez. It has to end with 'Battlefront'. That's a must."

"We're taking the front line in this battlefield," Alexis turns and says to everyone. "Don't any of you have any decent ideas?"

The smaller boy then looked over at me and said, "Hey. It looks like that guy's up." Everyone turned and stared at me.

"Oh, he's conscious again?" Alexis looked at me. "I told him to think of something, maybe he's got an idea."

Alexis walked over to the couch. "Well, you've had plenty of time, tell us what you came up with," she said expectantly.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You were supposed to think of a new name for Not-Yet-Dead Battlefront!" She said irritatedly.

"Why don't you do it yourself?" I scoff at her. I'm so tired of all this 'Battlefront' business.

"Oh, you've got some guts, smart-mouthing to Alexis," the boy with the samurai sword threatened menacingly. He took a step towards me.

"Don't drag me into this!" I said as I sprang up from the couch. "I want to get obliterated, ASAP!"

"You do?" Calmly asked a tall, skinny boy as he straightened his glasses. "Even though you exist here right now?"

"I already explained things," Alexis cut in.

"You're willing to get obliterated without a fight?" The boy asked calmly.

"Yeah!" I nodded.

"You're willing to become a water flea?"

"Wait..." I paused. "A _water flea_?"

"Did you really think humans were the only ones with souls?" The boy with the sword rolled his eyes. "Moron."

"This is so stupid," scoffed an Asian girl in the corner with long, dark hair.

"You could get reborn as a barnacle, or a hermit crab, or a sea slug," said the muscular boy. "It could happen."

"What?" I asked. "No way."

"You're so shocked, you haven't questioned why it's limited to sea life." The boy with the glasses rolled his eyes. "There's no particular reason, really," he shrugged.

"Go on. Get out of here," the boy with the sword gestures towards the door. "Listen to Angel and get reborn. Turn into a barnacle and get eaten by humans. That'd be a great life," he scoffed.

...A barnacle? Really?

Apparently the topic launched the group into great discussion.

"Wait... Barnacles are edible?" The younger boy looked shocked.

"There are some edible ones," the boy with the glasses nodded.

"I never knew that..." said Josh as he rubbed the red hand-print on his face, which matched almost exactly with his red hair.

"This is so stupid," scoffed the dark-haired girl again.

"C'mon guys," Alexis said to the Battlefront. "There's no reason to kick the guy out just yet. It's not the policy of... um..." she snapped her fingers trying to remember what name they'd decided on. "What's our name now?"

"The Barnacle Battlefront," prompted the boy with the sword.

"Oh, yeah. The Barnacle Battle -" Alexis stopped herself mid-syllable before she realized what she was saying.

Everyone in the room was now having trouble keeping a straight face.

Alexis returned the boy's remark with a kick to the head, which caused even more laughter.

"That's it," she snapped. "It's going back to 'Underworld Battlefront'."

"That was a nice kick..." the boy sobbed.

Alexis rolled her eyes and turned to me. "We're safe from Angel as long as we're in this base. After all, that _is_ why you came here, right?"

"No, it's not," I told her. "Besides, I got sent flying when I tried to come in here." I looked to the other Battlefront members. "And you guys _are_ joking about being reincarnated as anything but human, right?"

They shook their heads. "It's no joke," one of them said.

"But how can you be so sure?" I asked. "Who saw that happen?"

"Well, we don't know for sure," Alexis admitted, "but Buddhism doesn't say that we'll be reborn as just humans."

"Whatever," I muttered.

Alexis sighed and crossed her arms. "Now listen carefully, because this is important." She looked me in the eye seriously. "In our previous world, death went after people randomly. It's not like we could actually defy it.

"But this world is different. We can exist as long as we resist Angel." Her aqua eyes sparkled with hope. "We can fight back."

"But what are all of you trying to accomplish?" I asked.

"Our goal is to get rid of Angel once and for all," she said nobly, "after that, this world will belong to us." Everyone in the room was dead serious by now. Alexis continued, "Because you're new here, it's no wonder you're a little confused. But right now, you need to accept things as they are."

"Accept things... and fight? Against Angel?" I asked.

"That's right," Alexis smiled as she extended her hand. "Fight with us."

I slowly moved my hand towards hers.

I was just about to shake her hand when all of a sudden, the door crashed open, and the boy from before with spiky black hair stood in the doorway.

"Hold on a minute!" He screamed, brandishing his halberd and slowly walking towards me.

Then I heard that familiar swooping sound, and I looked over just in time to see the giant mallet swing towards the boy, sending him flying out the window.

I saw Alexis roll her eyes. "Moron," she muttered.

"The idiot fell for his own trap," the boy with the sword said as he shook his head.

"What that genius forgot was that you need a password to enter safely," said Alexis. "After all, this is our Anti-Angel Headquarters. This is the only safe place we can talk." She tilted her head. "So, you gonna join us?" Am I? Well... these kids were certainly more friendly than that 'Angel' girl.

"Can I think about this for a bit?" I asked.

"Sure you can," she grinned slyly, "anywhere but here." Hrm... but that meant that Angel could come after me again if I wasn't in this password-protected base. This place was probably the one place on campus that was safe from her.

"Well?" Alexis asked expectantly.

"Oh, all right, fine!" I said irritatedly. "What's the password?"

Alexis smiled as she walked up to me. "'There is no Angel,'" she said as she shook my hand. "Welcome aboard."

"This here is Josh," Alexis gestured to the red-haired boy I'd seen before. "He's just as lazy as he looks, but sometimes he pulls through."

"Hey!" Josh shouted a protest, but Alexis simply ignored him.

"That's Ryan," Alexis nodded towards the larger, muscular boy. He was a bit on the husky side. "He has a 5th-degree Judo belt, so everybody calls him Ryan the 5th."

"Nice to meetcha," he said as he shook my hand, nearly pulling my arm out of its socket. Ryan had a brown buzz cut and a stone-faced expression.

"He's Michael," Alexis pointed to the smaller boy. Michael had large blue eyes and blonde hair. He also had that cute, childish look to him.

"Welcome to the Battlefront," Michael smiled shyly. He didn't look as old as he probably was, with his boyish face.

"The guy who keeps straightening his glasses trying to look smart is Lucas," Alexis continued. "He's actually an idiot."

"Very nice to meet you," Lucas said, straightening his glasses. He had straight, jet-black hair and piercing eyes that matched almost exactly in color.

"Let's dance!" A boy with bleached blonde hair jumped next to me and started break-dancing. He was wearing a red bandanna over his face that covered his eyes, and was wearing a pair of handcuffs on a chain around his neck. He was extremely tall and thin.

"Um... I don't dance," I said awkwardly.

"That's how he greets people,' Alexis explained, unfazed. "He's TK. Nobody knows his real name."

"Feel the rhythm!" TK yelled as he spun on his head.

"This here is Jared." Alexis pointed to the boy with the samurai sword.

Jared was staring daggers at me all the while, fire blazing in his dark eyes. He had tousled black hair, and a menacing look in his eyes.

"Punk," he spat.

"I'm not a punk..." I muttered.

Alexis continued. "The genius who went flying out the window is Kyle." I winced. Kyle was the one who decided to pay me a visit when I was in the infirmary. I'll have to watch out for him.

She gestured to the girl in the corner. "The one who keeps saying 'this is so stupid' is Skyler."

Skyler said nothing, keeping her eyes closed as she leaned against the wall.

"This is Robin," Alexis nodded toward the girl with the guitar. "She's the leader of our diversion unit."

Robin remained silent but gave me a warm smile. She had choppy brown hair and warm cinnamon eyes.

"And I'm Alex." Alexis smiled at me, flipping her hair over her shoulders. "There are a few dozen other Battlefront members hiding throughout the school."

I glanced around at everyone, trying to memorize their names.

"Well," Alex said, "that's all of us. Now who are you?"

I started to say something, but then I stopped. Who _am_ I? Could I really have forgotten my own name?

"Uh..." I racked my brain, trying to remember anything from my past. I sent my thoughts into the deep murkiness of my amnesia, trying to gather any information that I could find. All that I could find was black haze, along with that nagging feeling you get when you know that you forgot something important.

However, I managed to scrounge up a name: Naylor. Unfortunately, that's all that I could find. Just a last name. No first name, even.

"...Naylor," I finally said. "I'm Naylor."

Jared gave me a funny look. "'Naylor'?" he smirked. "What kind of name is that?"

"It's my _last_ name!" I shot back. This guy really was really getting on my nerves...

"So, Naylor," Alex cast a sharp glance in Jared's direction, causing his grin to fade a bit. "What's your first name, then?"

"I... I can't remember." I admitted.

"Oh, the whole amnesia thing?" Josh put his hand on my shoulder and smiled comfortingly. "Don't worry. It'll come back eventually."

I hope he's right.


	6. Chapter 6: Naylor

**Chapter 6: Naylor**

* * *

><p>I'd wanted to be alone for a while, so I went up to the roof.<p>

I fingered the badge on the sleeve of my new Battlefront version of the school's uniform, lost in thought.

So I really _was_ dead...

I leaned up against the roof's railing, gazing down at the school. At the moment, the school's track team was out practicing on the football field.

...So where was I now? Some kind of high school for ghosts?

If I leaned forward too far, I'd probably fall off and get myself killed. But then again, it wouldn't really matter if I did. I'd just wake up again a few hours later.

I couldn't even remember how I ended up in this world. Judging by my memory, I wouldn't be surprised if I died because of something stupid, like forgetting to look both ways before crossing the street.

I guess that only time will tell. I just hoped that Josh was right about my memory.

I looked down from the roof, watching the track team practice.

"This school is huge," I said to myself, watching the countless students bustling around below.

"Yeah, it's gigantic," a voice behind me startled me so badly that I almost fell off the roof for real.

I turned around to find a mischievous-looking Alexis standing behind me, holding a soda and epically _failing_ at trying to hide her snickering.

I glared at her, but she only gave me a smile in response.

After a moment, I realized that I was smiling, too. I guessed that Alexis was one of those people whose smiles are contagious.

She walked up next to me and silently gazed out at the school like I did, producing an awkward silence.

After a while, I loudly cleared my throat, breaking the silence.

Alexis jumped, my loud noise startling her. Now it was my turn to grin.

I chuckled softly and she gave a puzzled look. I decided to change the subject, not that there really even _was_ a subject of conversation before.

"So what are they doing?" I asked, nodding toward the students on the football field.

"They're either going home or to club meetings," Alexis said, leaning up against the railing.

"Oh," I said. "Are any of you in clubs?"

Alexis rolled her eyes. "We _humans_ would get obliterated if we do."

"So... those kids down there... aren't human?" What were they, then? Aliens?

Alexis took a sip of her soda. "Nope. They're NPC's."

"NPC's?" What could that stand for?

"Non-player characters." Alexis glanced down at the students below us, her face displaying a look of ridicule.

"Like... in a video game?"

She rolled her eyes again. "It's just a comparison. It means that they're just here to fill up space. They've been here since the very beginning, and they'll be here until the very end."

She took another sip of her soda. "Any other questions?"

"Yeah... What's up with Angel?" I asked. "She stabbed me when she first met me."

Alexis winced. "Yeah... I saw that. You pretty much asked for it when you said to prove that you were dead. So she killed you."

She shrugged. "She's not much different than the NPC's aside from the fact that she's emotionless. And she'll kill you if you cause trouble."

She took another sip of her soda. "Anything else?"

"Yeah..." I looked her in the eye. "My last question is about God. Does He exist?"

Alexis looked away and gazed down at the school for a moment. Her eyes seemed distant, as if she was lost in thought. I imagine that she was.

"I believe in Him," she said softly. "Not that I've ever seen Him, of course."

We were both silent for a while after that, gazing out at the school of the afterlife.

Then all of a sudden, I heard this loud crunching noise, jolting me from my daydream and nearly sending me falling off the roof.

I caught myself, and when I whirled around to see what the terrifying noise was, I saw...

Alexis with a crumpled soda can in her hand, not even bothering to hide her laughing anymore. She thought that me almost dying was hilarious.

I tried to give her a death glare (no pun intended), but her contagious laughter caused me to chuckle instead. It was impossible to stay mad at Alexis.

"Well," Alexis said, wiping a tear from her eye, "I guess I'll see ya." She then abruptly turned around and walked back inside.

After she was gone, I turned back to the railing and watched the sun go down, thinking about what Alexis had said.

In all truth and honesty, I wasn't so sure that I'd join them.

The most important thing for me right now was to buy time until I get my memories back.

After that... after that, we'll see.


	7. Chapter 7: Naylor

**Chapter 7: Naylor**

* * *

><p>"Here," Alexis said, thrusting a handgun into my hands.<p>

It was nighttime, so all of the students were in their dorms by now, but most of the Battlefront members were gathered in the Principal's office.

"What's this?" I asked, referring to the unknown weapon in my hands.

"Glock 17," Alexis said as she sat down at the Principal's desk. "Use it to defend yourself against Angel."

"But she's a girl!" I can't shoot a girl!

"Your point?" Alexis glared at me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Josh standing behind her, waving his arms and shaking his head frantically, mouthing the words "stop talking".

"Uh... Nothing..." I mumbled, looking away from both Alexis and Josh.

Alexis suddenly whirled around and saw Josh standing behind her, sending me my silent warning. Josh suddenly stopped and meekly said, "Uh-oh..."

Alexis slapped him in the face, producing a loud sound that was almost painful to my ears. "You idiot!" She snarled. "I knew you were behind me!"

Josh whimpered pathetically and rubbed the new hand-shaped mark on his face.

Alexis turned to face me, her expression was now calm once again. "So what were we talking about?" She asked lightly. Yeesh. Mood swings.

"Uh... Shooting Angel?" I asked cautiously.

"Oh, yeah. Aim for her legs and feet," Alexis continued as if nothing had just happened. "That way, she can't chase you."

She stopped suddenly. "You _do_ have experience, right?"

"Uh... Sure." I said hesitantly. The Wii counts, right? I mean, it's almost the same.

I'll probably end up shooting myself accidentally. But I guess it's not like I'll really die or anything.

"All right!" Alexis grinned at me and opened one of the Principal's desk drawers and rifled through it for a second. She then pulled out a gun for herself.

Now that I think about it... Where _is_ the Principal anyway?

"Hey, Michael..." I leaned over and whispered to Michael, who was next to me, "what happened to the Principal?"

"Alexis and Josh held him hostage once to try to get Angel to tell them more about this world. It didn't work."

"So... where is he now?" I asked.

Michael thought for a moment. "I don't know, actually..."

There was an awkward silence that followed.

After a moment or two, Alexis called out to the scattered Battlefront members. "Gather 'round everybody!" She said. "It's time for another Operation Tornado!"

Wait... Did she just say '_tornado_'? Just what are they planning?

"Let's get started!" Ryan pumped his fist in the air enthusiastically.

"Let's blow away the students' meal tickets!" Alexis said with dramatic seriousness.

…Meal tickets? That's it?

"You guys are just stealing meal tickets?" I cried. "You're just a bunch of bullies with weapons!" And all this time I'd thought they were some kind of terrorist group. "This is so disappointing," I muttered.

"Watch your mouth!" Kyle stalked up next to me and swung his halberd at me. I was so tired of this by now.

"Why should I?" I scoffed. "You guys are just stealing stupid _meal tickets_." Oh, that would be _so_ terrifying. _Oh no, they threatened me with a gun, but I just can't give up my chicken soup meal ticket..._ Gimme a break.

"Naylor," Alexis said slowly, as if explaining something to a toddler. "We're _literally_ going to _blow them away_."

...Okay? But what does that even _mean_?

"...And how do you expect to do that?" I asked. Are they actually depending on a real tornado?

"That's going to a be a surprise," Alex grinned mischievously. "For you, anyway."

Ugh. More 'surprises'. "Fine, then." I muttered.

"All right!" Alexis clapped her hands together and pulled out a list of names. "Kyle, Josh, TK, Jared, Ryan, Michael, Skyler, Lucas, and Naylor will be on Team Barricade." Alexis turned to me. "Your job is to prevent Angel from intruding. If you hear a gunshot, that means that someone needs backup, so make sure to go and help."

"Robin, you're on for diversions again tonight," Alex said as she glanced down at the list.

"Everyone got it?" Alex asked and we all nodded in response. "All right. We begin promptly at 6:30 tonight."

When she put the list on the desk, I took a quick peek at it. On it were a few names that I recognized, including my own. But there were also several names on it that I had never heard of, listed under 'Team Diversion' with Robin. Mikayla, Natalie, Maria, Marleigh, Tamara... Who were these people? And why were they all girls, anyway?

I mentally shrugged. Maybe I'll meet them soon.

Alexis snatched up the list from the desk and put it in her pocket, startling me from my thoughts.

She then stood on the desk, although I seemed to be the only one who was surprised by this. After all, she was wearing a skirt.

Alexis then pumped her fist in the air and cried energetically, "Operation: Start!"


	8. Chapter 8: Naylor

**Chapter 8: Blake**

* * *

><p>I had been assigned to an 'easy location', the 2nd entrance bridge.<p>

They were right. It was easy. And boring. It was also kinda creepy. I was alone at night, waiting for the Angel of Death to arrive.

I looked around at the clear night sky. It was a full moon, and the stars were shining pretty brightly. Things seemed so much more vivid in this world.

I clutched my pistol apprehensively. How do they plan on 'peacefully' stealing all those meal tickets, anyway?

I heard a distant voice singing somewhere off, and I realized that it sounded a lot like Robin. Is that their 'Diversion Team'?

I tapped my foot to the beat, and found that I kinda liked their music. It wasn't that girly-bubblegum-pop stuff that I was expecting. I was rock, and I liked that.

I did a full 360-scan of the horizon. Good. No sign of Angel yet.

...Aw, who am I kidding? They obviously didn't trust me enough with a gun, so they put me someplace where Angel would _never _show up.

I wondered what I'd do if she actually _did_ show up here...

I don't even want to think about that right now. I'd probably chicken out.

The sound of approaching footsteps from behind me startled me from my thoughts.

I groaned. It was probably Kyle here to harass me again.

"What do you want, Kyle?" I asked irritatedly as I turned around to face whoever was approaching.

I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw who it was.

It wasn't Kyle.


	9. Chapter 9: Maria

**Chapter 9: Maria**

* * *

><p>I stood among the crowd, blending in with the NPCs. No need to alert anyone just yet.<p>

I looked around at the students and glanced over by the cafeteria doorway. There were a lot of people already here, and more still coming in. Many of the students were already waiting in line, their meal tickets in hand. It looked like it was the perfect time to start.

Pressing a finger to my earphone, I spoke into it, alerting the girls that it was time to get going. "Robin, Marlie, Natalie, and Tamara; I believe that it's about time to start. Mikayla, you should come with me to the audience."

Robin responded after a second or two. "All right, then," she said over the communicator. "Let's rock n' roll this place."

I heard everyone's agreeing response along with Mikayla's excited babbling through my earphone. Time to get started.

I merged in with a group of NPCs and found Mikayla among the scattered students. We then walked over to a place that had a better view of the stage.

Mikayla squealed in excitement, producing a sound that I cannot express in words or letters. "Isn't this SO exciting?" She was bouncing up and down by now. "I just LOVE GlDeMo! I'm only a band assistant right now, but someday I'll be up there with Marlie, and Natalie, and Tamara, and Robin, singing! Or maybe I'll play the guitar! But I'm still glad to be an assistant. I'm just lucky to be working with them at all! They're always so nice to me. And SO COOL! Hey, we've been waiting for a long time. When's the concert gonna start?"

I said nothing, enjoying the few seconds of silence. Waiting for 'a long time' seemed like an understatement when talking to Mikayla. Does she ever stop to breathe?

Just then, the lights went out, then suddenly came on again, with the girls magically onstage, holding their instruments. They were ready for action, fingers ready, drumsticks poised, mouth open to the microphone.

The crowd roared with applause, and they hadn't even done anything yet. NPCs were so easy to please.

Natalie played a riff on the drumset, causing the crowd to go wild. I recognized that riff. It was the beginning to 'Crow Song'.

As I'd predicted, Marlie joined in on her guitar, and Tamara joined in on her bass. Robin then joined in on her guitar, singing the opening lyrics to the song:

_I feel the window shutters tremble and slam,_

_My fingertips smell of my iron strings,_

_Move ahead, sing and shred,_

_It's a huge crowd at any rate._

I looked over to Mikayla, who was now tapping her foot and nodding her head in time to the music. I listened to the chorus:

_Fly away from this dark place,_

_From now and forever,_

_Rock shapes this existence,_

_Gaze into the distance._

The song went on, and soon it reached the intense, loud bridge of the song that got all the students dancing.

Then I heard the voice of Alexis, who was watching from nearby. "The concert's reached its peak," she spoke over the communicator. "Turn on the fans."

"Roger," I replied, and headed backstage. Mikayla would be fine on her own. She was enjoying this so much, I doubt that she'd even notice I was gone.

When I finally made it backstage, I found the 'fans' I was looking for, a group of Battlefront students. Each Battlefront member was ready and waiting beside an enormous fan with enough power to match a tornado.

"Alexis said to turn them on," I relayed the information. They all nodded and flipped the switches, starting the 'tornado'. Seeing that my work here was done, I went to the second level of the cafeteria so I could get a better look at the operation.

It was all going smoothly, and a few meal tickets were already beginning to flutter away from their owners, not that the NPCs noticed anything. They were all too busy listening to the concert.

I smiled in admiration. The girls had done another great job. Nobody noticed a thing.

Suddenly, I heard a distant gunshot, piercing through the music coming from the stage. I listened more closely, and heard it followed by one, two, three more shots after it. Not a good sign.

I walked over to a nearby window and looked outside, hoping to find the cause of the disturbance. That's when I saw it.

And I did _not_ like what I saw.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note<strong>

I don't normally like to do author's notes, but I must give credit where credit is due.

I grabbed the English lyrics for 'Crow Song' from this video:

http: youtube .com/watch?v=io1-yOLwCm8


	10. Chapter 10: Naylor

**Chapter 10: Naylor**

* * *

><p>There, in the moonlight, I saw a petite figure with long, white-blonde hair standing a few feet away from me, watching me with an unreadable expression on her face.<p>

I just stood there, frozen with fear for a few seconds. Angel was here.

She then began slowly walking towards me, with a disturbing zombie-like resemblance.

She's actually here, I thought as she took a step towards me. This is for real.

She stared at me with her golden eyes, the moonlight glinting off of them with a playful air. However, her eyes remained hollow and unfeeling.

Of course, I thought as she took another step. She had to show up here. Just when I though that my life - sorry, my afterlife - couldn't get any worse.

She took another step. She thought I was the weakest link. She thought I was the easy target. That's why she chose to show up here.

_Step_. She chose wrong. She was totally underestimating me.

_Step_. I raised my gun, trying as hard as I possibly could to hide the fact that I was trembling. I'd shoot her. I would, really...

I took another look into her amber eyes, recalling her angelic appearance and melodic voice. I felt a pang of guilt for what I was about to do.

_Step_. ...I couldn't shoot at her like this. I'd always been a wimp. I even winced at "Call of Duty" when I first played it.

I shook my head, shaking the fantasy of the so-called "Angel" in front of me. She was definitely not as innocent as she appeared. Definitely not as angelic as I thought.

_Step._ _Remember what she did to you before_, I told myself.

_Step._ She'd get me if I didn't get her.

I remembered the pain I'd felt when she'd stabbed me in the chest before. It was a torturous, unbearable agony that I'd never felt anything like before. It was enough to kill me, and I suppose it did, actually. I did not want to experience that kind of misery again.

_Step._ With shaking hands, I aimed my gun at her. I didn't care who I was shooting at. I did not want to go through something like that ever again.

_Step._ I clenched my teeth, squeezing my eyes shut. I didn't want to look.

There was a loud, earsplitting noise as I pulled the trigger, and Angel jolted and staggered backwards, her face still emotionless.

I hit her! I actually hit her! I stared at her in shock. My first real experience with a gun. Not too shabby. I mentally congratulated myself, although I still felt a bit guilty looking at the wounded Angel in front of me.

She looked down at her stomach as a dark red stain began to spread across her shirtfront. Her face showed not a hint of pain. She just stared at the spreading stain as if she didn't expect me to actually hit her.

I cursed under my breath. I'd shot her stomach. I meant to hit her legs. Ugh... I guess that the Wii really is different... I stink at this.

"Guard skill: Hand-Sonic," Angel said, causing me to feel as if I recognized those words from somewhere. They sounded so familiar... Where have I heard that before?

I was pulled back to reality as a sword materialized out of her sleeve. It was the sword I knew all too well. I recognized the situation a moment too late.

"No way..." I muttered. This can't be happening. Not again.

Her long, white-blonde hair blew poetically in the breeze as the moonlight glinted off of her sword. She then resumed ominously walking towards me, sword in hand, ignoring the wound on her stomach.

That's when I did what I thought was the most logical thing to do at the time: I ran.


	11. Chapter 11: Kyle

**Chapter 11: Kyle**

I was alone during Operation Tornado, assigned in directly in front of the cafeteria doorway. I was placed exactly in front of the concert, which only meant that I was considered to be the last resort. After the Battlefront caught on to the "I-hate-Naylor" thing, I was placed a good distance away from that newcomer. I couldn't say I wasn't happy with that arrangement. I didn't want anything to do with that jerk. He upset Alexis.

Then again... So did I.

I sighed and sat down, leaning against the cafeteria doorway, and placed my halberd on the ground next to me. I'd messed up. Really badly, this time. It would've been the perfect time to tell her...

I cried out with rage and punched the concrete ground, not caring how badly it may have hurt my fist. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. Ever since that amnesiac came here this afternoon, everything went downhill from there. Now nothing seemed to be turning out right.

I remembered all that had happened this afternoon. What a crazy day.

When I'd heard that the amnesiac was in our headquarters, I'd gone after him to straighten him out. When I'd heard that he had become one of us, I was furious, of course, but there was nothing that I could do about it. Alexis herself had let him in. There was no way I could go against Alexis, no matter what.

* * *

><p>I remembered when I went up to the roof earlier today to get some fresh air, I saw Alexis there, leaning on the railing, just gazing out at the the sunset. I was just about to join her when I saw who she was with.<p>

Leaning against the railing beside her, was Naylor.

It made my blood boil, seeing someone like him with someone like her. I still didn't forgive him for first rejecting her. Rejecting her very ideas, her philosophy.

I was just about to go after him when something happened that stopped me in my tracks.

He made Alexis laugh. She laughed that beautiful laugh that put me in a trance. It sounded like a symphony, sweet and harmonious. I never wanted it to end. I savored the few seconds that it lasted, for this was a sound that I rarely heard.

When reality finally dragged me back, I realized what had just happened. Alexis actually seemed to like being with this guy. He made her smile that beautiful smile, and laugh that sweet laugh, something that I couldn't do myself. I didn't want to get in the way of something like that, even if it did involve that jerk. As quietly as I could, I closed the door to the rooftop and walked back downstairs, taking in what I had just seen.

At the bottom of the stairs, Jared was waiting for me, oddly enough, and looking serious about it.

He leaned against the wall. "What happened?" He asked expectantly.

"Nothing," I muttered as I tried to shove past him.

He moved to the side, blocking my path again.

"Are you sure about that?" He asked, nodding towards something behind me, and I turned around to see what it was.

It was Alexis. And she looked concerned.

"Kyle? Jared?" She asked, her eyes darting back and forth between us. "What's going on?"

"N-nothing..." I said, looking away. Had she seen me on the roof?

This would've been the perfect time to tell her. Three words. 'I love you'.

Just three simple words...

But all I did was mumble, "Everything's fine..." and mentally slap myself. What happened to me when I was with her? It's like my brain didn't work right.

Alexis' voice filled with concern. "Kyle..." she said softly. "Is something wrong?"

I slowly raised my eyes and saw that her aqua eyes were now full of worry.

She put her hand on my shoulder, and that's when I noticed just how small her hands were, not much bigger than a child's. Or maybe mine are just too big and clumsy. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Yeah..." I muttered, looking away again. Funny, how I could stare into her eyes for an eternity, but as soon as she looked back, I instinctively looked away. Ironic.

"Kyle, are you alright?" She put her other hand on my other shoulder. She was so small and soft and warm. Her head just barely reached my shoulders, and she smelled nice, like an ocean breeze.

I loved having her this close to me. I wanted to wrap my arms around her, to pull her closer, but I didn't dare. After all, this was only a gesture of sympathy. Nothing more.

"I-I'm fine..." I stuttered, slightly in shock that she was this close to me. Not that I didn't like it.

She slowly put her hands down, and I saw that she was looking at me with worried turquoise eyes.

"Kyle..." she said uncertainly, "I... I just..." She hesitated for a moment. "Just take care, all right?"

I did nothing but grunt in response. _What the heck was _wrong _with me? Talk to her!_

She gave me one last look of concern before opening and walking out the the door that led to the school hallway. That's when I noticed that Jared was gone.

I sighed and walked towards the door. That was a side of Alexis that I'd never seen before. What I just saw was so unlike the tough, fighting side of Alexis that I was used to. It was a bit disarming, but it was nice.

I was just about to put my hand on the doorknob when suddenly it turned and the door opened, and in walked Jared with a triumphant look on his face.

"Well, now," he said with a smirk. "It definitely looks like _something _has happened."

And I was too dazed by my meeting with Alexis to argue.

* * *

><p>I was yanked back to the present when I heard a loud sound breaking through the silence.<p>

Actually, the night wasn't silent anymore. Now I could hear the girls putting on another diversion concert from inside the cafeteria.

I peeked in from a nearby window and saw that everything was going according to plan. Several meal tickets were already being blown away by the fans. Perfect. It was all going smoothly...

That's when I heard a piercing noise. It sounded like... a gunshot? I looked around, and off in the distance I saw something, but I couldn't quite make out what it was.

Just then, I heard a nearby voice call out, "Kyle!"

I looked around and found that the voice turned out the be Maria's. She was calling out from the second floor window of the cafeteria.

"Naylor needs your help," she said as she pointed to the shadowy figures off in the distance.

I looked more closely at the distant figures, and I recognized Naylor's shaggy brown hair, along with his trembling hands as he aimed his gun at another figure with long white-blonde hair... and a sword.

Not good.

"Is that Angel?" I asked, even though I probably knew the answer already.

Maria nodded. "He needs help, and you're closest."

ME help HIM? No way... But... if Angel made it into the cafeteria, Alexis would NOT be happy...

...Argh! But why'd it have to be Naylor?

I heard another gunshot then, as if to stress the urgency.

"Kyle!" Maria cried. "Go help him!"

I heard two more gunshots. They were getting closer. I guess it wasn't like Naylor would really die...

"Kyle!" Maria practically pleaded.

"Augh! All right! Fine!" I growled in frustration as I picked up my halberd and ran off.

Maria owed me big time...


	12. Chapter 12: Naylor

**Chapter 12: Naylor**

* * *

><p>I kept running, convinced that I was losing her.<p>

I stopped, out of breath, and turned around. To my dismay, I saw that she was still slowly walking towards me, like a zombie.

Why wasn't she stopping? I fired another shot at her, hoping to slow her down. To my surprise, I heard a metallic clanging noise and found that she easily deflected the bullet with her sword. She then continued to advance as if nothing had happened.

I cursed under my breath and fired another shot at her as I ran off. I heard the familiar clanging noise again, but this time, I didn't bother to look back. I just kept running, firing a shot or two every so often, although it never really did much.

I finally ran so far that I led her until we were almost directly in front of the cafeteria entrance. By now I was out of breath, ideas, and bullets.

Cornered, I turned around to face the Angel of Death. She was still ominously walking towards me, her emotionless facial expression only making things even creepier.

I raised my useless gun and aimed it at her, although I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it. I swore under my breath, having run out of ideas.

Just when I thought I was about to die for the umpteenth time, something unexpected occurred.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something flying through the air towards Angel.

She easily deflected the unknown item and flung it a good distance away, but as it was flying through the air, I'd noticed that it looked like... an airborne halberd?

That could only mean one thing.

I turned around and saw Kyle standing behind me, empty-handed and angry, muttering various cuss words.

"I missed her..." he said as he cursed frustratedly.

He then pulled a handgun out of his jacket pocket and aimed it at Angel, fury blazing in his eyes.

Before he could shoot, Josh suddenly appeared next to us holding a rifle.

"Sorry to make you wait," he said as he grinned at us.

Then we heard a familiar voice call out, "Don't stop dancin'!" And TK danced up next to us holding a gun as well.

"She went after the weakest person here!" Jared said as he ran up to us with a machine gun.

"Thanks," I muttered sarcastically. What was his problem?

"She's still only using Hand-Sonic," Josh said as he aimed his gun.

"We should attack while we retreat," Ryan said as he ran up holding... was that a bazooka?

"Roger," I heard Lucas' voice over a walkie-talkie attached to Ryan's belt loop.

I looked around and saw that Lucas and Michael were on a nearby roof with... sniper rifles? Where did they get all these weapons, anyway?

Michael waved at me from the roof, and I saw Lucas slap him in the head, which caused me to chuckle.

Angel's voice snapped me back to the gunfight about to break out. "Guard Skill: Distortion," she said, and her entire body looked as if it became pixelated for a moment before returning back to normal. What was that about?

"Open fire!" Josh screamed as we all began shooting at Angel. Well, everybody except for me.

To my surprise, though nobody else seemed shocked, Angel seemed completely unaffected by the bullets. In fact, they appeared to bounce off of her body, as if she was protected by some kind of invisible shield. What the heck was happening?  
>Then Skyler appeared out of nowhere and threw a grenade at Angel at the same moment that Ryan fired his bazooka, producing an enormous explosion.<p>

After the smoke cleared, I saw Angel emerge from the cloud of dust completely unharmed. What just happened?

"Why haven't they stolen the tickets yet?" Josh screamed as everyone began shooting at Angel again, producing an earsplitting sound of gunfire and ricochet, blending in with the rock music that was coming from inside the cafeteria. The bullets were bouncing off of Angel and flying absolutely everywhere.

I had no idea that buying time could be so intense...

Then something caught my attention. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a tiny piece of paper fluttering to the ground. I walked over and picked it up only to find out that it was... a meal ticket?

I looked up and saw that more were appearing, and soon hundreds of meal tickets were floating through the night sky. I stared at the one in my hand. "Spaghetti and Meatballs," it said. "$3.50."

I looked up into the sky and saw the countless meal tickets gently fluttering about the sky like confetti. Huh. I guess it was _kinda_ like a tornado. Somewhat.

"Naylor!" A hand suddenly grabbed my shoulder. I turned around and saw that it was Josh. He, along with the various Battlefront members nearby, were now running away from the scene, grabbing random meal tickets as they went. "Let's go!" Josh shouted as he plucked a random meal ticket out of the air and grabbed my arm, making me run with him.

As we were running, I stole one last glance behind me, and saw Angel just standing there alone in front of the cafeteria, her emotionless amber eyes staring at us as we retreated.


	13. Chapter 13: Naylor

**Chapter 13: Naylor**

* * *

><p>"Here's your spaghetti," the lunch lady said with a slight look of disapproval in her eyes as she looked me over.<p>

"Thanks..." I replied, slightly confused at her disapproving look. Great another addition to the 'people who hate Naylor' list.

"Here, you need a fork," she said as she handed one to me. "And a haircut..." she mumbled as she gave me one last distasteful glance.

"All right..." I said uncertainly as I walked away. Current people on list: Angel, Kyle, Jared, and now this lady. Fantastic.

I carried my plastic tray through the cafeteria, making my way over to the table where the Battlefront was sitting, finding a seat between Michael and Alex.

Everyone seemed uncharacteristically calm, especially Kyle, who was quietly sipping tomato soup across the table from me.

"Is it okay for us to be eating like this?" I asked, glancing around at the various Battlefront members sitting at the table. "Won't Angel attack us when our guard is down?"

Alexis looked up from her mashed potatoes. "Well," she said, shrugging, "we're just eating," and then continued with her meal. This was creepy. Why was everyone so quiet? Well, I guess Angel would only attack us if we caused trouble.

"So that's how it works..." I said, half to myself as I stared at my spaghetti.

I looked around at everybody, talking and laughing while they were eating. They looked just like normal high school students, enjoying lunch. I didn't get it.

They could do anything they wanted with their power and unification combined, yet here they were, eating a boring meal.

I glanced over at Jared, who was giving Michael a noogie next to me, and smiled. Maybe these guys weren't as tough as I thought they were.

I stared at the spaghetti in my plastic tray, along with the piece of angel food cake next to it, reminding me of the incident from the night before. I remembered Angel standing alone by the cafeteria that night, her golden eyes shining in the moonlight as she watched us leave.

I reflected on what had happened, focused on the night before while everybody else was simply focused on whatever it was that they were eating.

There was really just one enemy, I realized. It was just Angel. We were just fighting against her, just an innocent high-school girl.

...No. Scratch that. She was _definitely_ not as innocent and helpless as she appeared. She may look like an angel, but she _definitely_ wasn't as angelic as she seemed. The term 'demon' almost seemed more fitting for her.

...But did that justify our actions? Did that make things right?

I picked up my fork, ready to plunge it into the mountain of cheese and tomato sitting on my plate.

...No, I couldn't say yet. After all, I still had amnesia.

I put down my fork and stared at the tomato-y heap in front of me, too deep in thought to even think about eating at the moment.

I was only here to buy time.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

This concludes the first volume of my "Angel Beats" series, "Departure".

If you like it, please stay tuned for the second volume: "Guild".

I, along with the the Underworld Battlefront, hope to see you all soon!


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